Archibald hu



@uitrit tant getraut @fitte ARCHIBALD HU-.T'roN, or s'r.` Loro-Is, MISSOURI.

Letters Patent No.4 71,016, dated .November 19, 18d?. I

IMPROVEMENT INVALVNS Pon srsAM ENGINES.

@La .tlg'rh'ulr nieta tu ir tigen tttters tant ma making gmt nf itc same.

TO ALL WHOM IT'MAY CONCERN:

Beit known that I,-.AncI1IBALn HUT'roN, of St. Louis, in the county of St. Louis, and State of Missouri, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Condensin'g Attachment forI-Iigh-Iressurc Steam Engines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and clear description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of referencevmarked thereon.

The nature of. this invention consists 'in arranging the slide-valve on an auxiliary valvcof a steam engine in such a manner as to permit the lirst part and largest volume of the exhaust steam to escape into the open atmosphera'through an escape-chimney, as is usual with higl1-pressure engines; then thc'remaindcr ofthe exhaust steam is, by the peculiar construction of the vulve and exhaustlpassages, to be turned aside into-the condenser, and by thismeans a tolera-bly perfect vacuum may beproduced in the cylinder, and at a very trilling expense. Y

In adapting these improvements tohigh-pressure engines now in use, it will bc necessary to apply an auxiliary valve, in addition to the`ordinary valves at present in use, but when a new ongine is to be' built, one single valve may be constructed so as to be able to act as steam, exhaust, and condensing-valve. In allowing the largest volume of steam to escape through the exhaust-chimney into the open air, it is obvious that but a f small volume of steam will remain in the cylinder to be condensed, and hence the amount of cold water used in the condenser will be verysmall, and this fact alone will so cheapen thc operation of a condensing engine as to permit its use in, municipalities where the cost of water is an important item of expense.

To. enable lthose skilled in the art to make and use my improved condensing attachment, I will proceed to 'describe its construction and operation.

Figure 1 ofthe drawingsis a longitudinal sectional elevation of the improved condensing attachment, showing the auxiliary valve arrangement, taken on line x-y. l

Figure 2 is a'transversclsectional elevation of same, taken on line .el-yl of fig. 1. f

Figure 3 is Va'sectional plan of the exhaustQpassagcs leading to the condenser, taken on line .a2-y2 ot' figs. 1 and 2.

'Ifthi's condensing attachment is to be applied to an old high-pressure engine, the valve A will bo an auxilw iary valve, used in combination with the ordinary valve of the engine; but if the attachment is to be app-lied to a new engine, the said valve A may be lso constructed and operated as to perform the entire oilicc of steam, exhaust,` and condenser-valve. In this case the'valve-chost A will become the steam-chest of the engine. The valve A h as a central port, a, which, at'the first moment of the exhaustfis to be arranged so as to cover the exhaust-port al of the engine, and the port azleading -to the escape pipe, thus opening a direct passage for the exhaust steam to escape through thclexhaustchimney, (not shown.) At one, or at both ends ofthe valve A, are port openings, a3, which, by means of the proper cam motion, arc to be made to uncover the exhaustport al the moment after the first 'and largestvolume ot' steaml shall have escaped up the chimney. When either of these port openings ora is over the port a, it will open communication between the said port and the ports a, at the ends of thesaid port al, as is clearly shown intig. 2, at the same l time closingr the port a leadw ing to the exhaust chimney, and 'thereby opening communication between 'the cylinder and the condenser through thc tortuous passages-B, while closing that to the escape-chimney. Buythese arrangements it will readily be s een that as soon as the largest volume of the steam shall have escaped through the exhaust-chimney the remaining prtion left-in the cylinder will be turned aside. into the condenser, through the passages B and then condensed with a triiing 'expenditure of water. l

I do not intend to confine myself Vto the precise form of valve herein described, well knowing that many variations in theformo said valves may be readily constructed by expert engineers; but it is hereby declared to be clearly within the scope'ofmy invention to use any form of valve by means of which the exhaust steam from the cylinder of a steam engin-e may be allowed t escape up the exhaust-chimney, until the bulk 0f the steam shall havegleftthe cylinder, and then the remainder turned aside into the condenser, and thereby a tolerably perfect vacuum created in the cylinder. i v i This device is equally applicable to'engines which escape into the open atmosphere or intoauxiliary cylinders'.`

Having described my invention, what I claim, is-

Thc valve A, when constructed with one or two port-openings, a, and combined with the ports a al a'Qand the condenser-passage B, as described and set forth. l

ARCHIBALD HU'rToN,

Witnesses:

M. RANDOLPH, R. SIMON.. 

